Foam Sheets for Layout

I think you will find that the cost-effective solution is to buy a 4x8 sheet at Home Depot and cut what you need. The 1/2"  stuff seems to be the most cost-effective, when you can find it.

Craft store foam is normally made from compressed mini balls of styrofoam.  I giant pain in the ... when working with it.  Do yourself a large favor and buy the 4x8 and cut it.  Pink or blue doesn't matter but not the WHITE craft stuff.  I cut mine with a hot knife from HF.  Russ

hot-knife-60313

If you are thinking about using Foam Core board, you will find it at Michael's Craft Stores or other similar places. It is usually about $ 2 to $ 3 for a 18" by 24" sheet.

Foam Core is about 1/4" thick white foam with an outer paper skin on both sides. It is easy to cut with an Exacto knife and straight edge ruler. It can be painted with water based paint but use thin washes of color at a time.

Foam Core in white or black can be found at Dollar Tree stores for $ 1 a sheet.

There is a whole selection of foam core tools available from Logan under their Foamwerks brand that are used to cut, trim, punch holes or cut circles if needed.

Thank you all. Foam core is indeed what I am looking for, just did not know the correct term for it.

Hi Gary,

Rich Redmond here.  Hobby Lobby has a good selection of foam core, I use a lot of the black to build the structure in some of my buildings. I then skin the outside with. Siding sheets or wood strips.

You may want to be carful painting it, I find it warps and cups pretty easily.  I often use Masonite or hard board from Home Depot for sidewalks and such around buildings.  Takes paint well, and easy to scribe seams in.

Any way welcome, good to see you posting!

Gary Liebisch posted:

Thank you all. Foam core is indeed what I am looking for, just did not know the correct term for it.

Gary,

Foam Core can be great for a lot of projects, train and non-train. With a little work it can look quite realistic. I've used it for sidewalks, roads, crossings, etc.

The book shown in the picture above is available free at:

http://42pasl1uqjjp17c9rm239rb...board-Magic-book.pdf

Just cut and paste the link.

Two hints when using foam core:

1) If you want to save some money at the expense of minor finger cramping, buy a big box of single edge razor blades instead of an Xacto knife. Clean cuts require a new blade, and razor blades bought in bulk are cheap enough that you can use a new one every time without feeling guilty.

2) When painting, always paint both sides. This will prevent the warping which will often otherwise happen (I am guessing that this is why Sean recommended thin washes).

Gary Liebisch posted:

Thank you all. Foam core is indeed what I am looking for, just did not know the correct term for it.

Hi Gary

I had no idea that you are a train guy. I am in the process of building a 24 X 27 around the room O Gauge layout. The last of the track was just laid today and much of the town has been built. Perhaps we can swap e-mail addresses and I will send pictures.

I happen to have a bunch of Super O track and switches that have been sitting in a container under the layout. I was going to put it up for sale but if you are interested, I would be happy to offer at a friendly price.

Check QRZ for my e-mail address....K8CJY.

All the best and I hope your enjoying retirement.

Jay

Avanti 

2) When painting, always paint both sides. This will prevent the warping which will often otherwise happen (I am guessing that this is why Sean recommended thin washes).

Exactly, too heavy layers of paint will cause some warping on the foam core 's paper cover.

OTOH - you might want the warping for some effects.

Lowes sell foam insulation board in approximately  2' x2'  for craft purposes it's like 5 or 6 bucks.

Sean007 posted:

Avanti 

2) When painting, always paint both sides. This will prevent the warping which will often otherwise happen (I am guessing that this is why Sean recommended thin washes).

Exactly, too heavy layers of paint will cause some warping on the foam core 's paper cover.

OTOH - you might want the warping for some effects.

Actually, I was referring to the warping of the entire sheet due to the shrinkage of the paper on one side caused by the paint (hence the advice to paint both sides).

Your point is equally important, though.

Michael's frequently sells the 24" X 30" for $1.00 each.  I buy a dozen at a time on sale.  I also use them for fold up display boards with pre hung goodies at train shows by using white duct tape as piano hinges.

For all replying to my original post, when I orginally built my present layout in 2016, I did not put down a foam base, which I later regretted. In my current 56 sq ft expansion, I DID lay down 1/2” pink foam as a base. The current dilemma is what to do about the original 80 sq ft without having to rip up all the track and start over. As I looked at my new MTH Sinclair gas station, I realized I need to do something about the thick base it comes on, in order to level it with the road in front of it. This post is my search for some foam layering to do just that. Thanks for all the input!

Meanwhile, over in the expansion section WITH the foam base, the Menards Barn base can have the foam contoured to its base for a more pleasing appearance.

Gary,

How about sharing some photos, sounds like you have a nice layout in process.